Authority: June 26, 2015

TODAY’S WORD FOR FRIDAY JUNE 26, 2015.

AUTHORITY

DEFINITION:

The power to determine and settle issues; the right to govern or control; rightful power.

SCRIPTURE:

And Jesus came and spoke to them (the disciples) saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.” Matthew 28:18.

Let every soul be subject to the government authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Romans 13:1.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

Have you noticed the lack of respect for authority today? This includes in our schools where the students have no respect for their teachers and even the students to their peers. Then look at the work place and the lack of respect workers have toward their bosses and vice-versa.

In the verse found in Romans (above) we see that the Apostle Paul gives us direction about the authority that our government leaders have over us. First of all, the scripture makes it clear that we are to respect our leaders. We are to be subject to civil authority. But when the laws of government conflict with the explicit commandments of God, then believers must say, as it is written in Acts 5:29, “We ought to obey God rather than man.”

As we know today in America, government laws and Biblical laws do not mesh. But often they contradict one another. We urge you to stand up for biblical principles in the evil world we live in.

Christians must stand for what is right in God’s sight and according to what the scriptures teach us. When those in authority require us to do anything that goes against God’s Word and His spiritual standards then we must as Christian’s rebel. When one goes against government leaders and follows the standards that God gives us, it comes with a price. In the Bible we find that those that believed in God often had to rebel against those in authority who were requiring them to break one or more of God’s commandments.

When this happened, they all knew there would be consequences. Daniel was thrown into a lion’s den. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego were thrown into the fiery furnace and many of the apostles and Paul were persecuted and paid with their lives.

No ruler can claim divine rights. The existence, the authority, the position, and the offices of government all are ordained by God according to His purposes. There are three institutions ordained by God. They are the family, the church and the government. All three exist because God set them up as the means by which men are to relate to each other and to Him as our God. Without some structure of authority we would have chaos. God expects the leaders of these institutions to be honorable and just and to operate within His laws. Remember those in authority in all three institutions are ordained by God and are answerable to a higher authority than themselves. They must answer to God Himself and give an account to Him.

The scripture teaches us about family authority. In Ephesians 5 and 6, we are reminded that children should obey and respect the authority of their parents. Parents must recognize the areas of authority each has in the family and be willing to submit to each other. There first priority must be to submit to the authority of God.

Jesus taught the disciples in Matthew 28: 18 (above) that “All authority was given to Jesus both in heaven and here on earth.” We know that we need to at all times, as believers, respect the authority of our Lord. In Matthew 7:29 we read that Jesus was teaching His disciples as one having authority, not as the scribes of the day taught.

When one is in a position of authority God expects that authority to be administered in humility and with respect. As believers our Lord expects us to go into all the world with authority and preach the gospel. This is our God ordained position of authority. In Titus 2:15 we are told to speak these things (the saving grace of our Lord), “exhort and rebuke with all authority. Let no one disregard you” -- because you are God’s spokesperson.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Colossians 3:4:

When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

PRAYER:

Thank You for the authority that You give those that put their complete trust in You. Help me today to understand Your Word and the commandments in Your Word so that I might live my life in submission to Your authority. Help me to respect the leaders in our family, in our church and in our government. Give me the proper discernment between right and wrong. Bless my family today as we honor You in all that we do.

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Ambition: June 25, 2015

TODAY’S WORD FOR THURSDAY JUNE 25, 2015.

AMBITION

DEFINITION:

An earnest desire for achievement; a willingness to strive for distinction or success, aspiration to achieve a particular goal, good or bad.

SCRIPTURE:

Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Philippians 2:3.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

When we think of having ambition it is usually an inward desire to be successful. What most people seek in order to fulfill their ambition in life is either the acquirement of power, the accumulation of wealth, the attainment of a desired position, or the accomplishment of a personal goal they have set.

Ambitions like these can be a positive force in one’s life because it can motivate a person to accomplish things in his or her life that makes them more useable by God. It becomes negative when an ambition becomes self-centered and drives one to go to any length to fulfill his or her personal ambition to glorify self.

The apostle Paul has a different perspective on ambition that we need to look at today and apply to our lives as believers. In the above verse Paul tells us that we are to do nothing through selfish ambition.

Paul tells us that our ambition in life must be to offer ourselves before God as lowly and submissive individuals. We are not to walk with pride, arrogance, haughtiness or being assertive for personal gain. Unfortunately, too often when one succeeds in his or her ambitious desire the result usually is pride and arrogance and a desire to flaunt one’s success.

God wants to bless us and to help us be successful through our ambition, but He also wants us to give Him the glory for any success and be humble with a servant’s heart and attitude. No matter how successful, how rich, or how powerful, the successful Christian must not think of himself as better than others. God wants us to remain humble and be submissive to Him so that our ambition will be for what God wants for us in our life.

For some reason the world looks upon humility as a weakness. Men seem to fear humility as being a sign of being a coward or slavish type of person. They often feel that being considered humble will make them the object of contempt and abuse and cause them to be shunned and overlooked. This is because they are focused on pleasing others rather than pleasing God.

A non-believers success is in themselves. A believer’s success comes from God. God is the strength of our life and He enables us to conquer the impossible. God wants us to walk with humility and not with pride. We are not to brag that it is “I” that is successful. We must never forget that it is God that gives us success. God is the one we should “brag” about. If our ambition is to be the best we can be for our Lord, He will fulfill our ambition.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Colossians 3:4:

When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

PRAYER:

Give me today a new ambition to serve You humbly and faithfully every day of my life. Help me to teach my children to have ambition to be the best they can be for the Lord. Help us as a family, as we study Your Word together, to give You the glory and to be humbly grateful for the successes You have given each of us.

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Now Go: June 24, 2015

TODAY’S WORD FOR WEDNESDAY JUNE 24, 2015.

NOW GO

DEFINITION:

To move or proceed to; to leave a place.

SCRIPTURE:

Now go; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say. Exodus 4:12 NIV

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

As we observe those that believe in Jesus as their Savior most do very little to share their faith with others. Some are fearful that they cannot answer the questions that may come from a non-believer.   Others are fearful that they will be considered as “odd balls” or “religious freaks.”

Others are just like Moses was years ago when God called him to lead the children of Israel out of the bondage of Egypt. Moses was reluctant to obey God. He gave various reasons that you can read in Exodus 4. Moses questioned his own identity and worthiness, his lack of authority, his credibility and acceptability, and his incapacity. God answered each of the excuses that Moses gave and we need to note that God was angry with Moses for resisting what He had asked him to do.

Now put yourself in the place of Moses. No doubt God will direct you to a smaller responsibility -- not to lead 2 million people -- but God expects His children, you and I, to respond when He calls.

Maybe God has laid it on your heart to talk to someone at work, a neighbor or a friend about their relationship with the Lord. Compare the excuses that Moses gave God to how you thought. Did you question your ability, tell God or said to yourself that you were not qualified or that you would not be accepted and probably ridiculed?

But God clearly responded to Moses just as He will respond to you. We may have similar fears, as Moses did, but when God calls us to do something for Him He will say, NOW GO; I will help you speak and will teach you what to say. When God sends us somewhere to represent Him, He comes alongside of us giving us all the support we will need.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Colossians 3:4:

When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

PRAYER:

Give me the courage to “Go” when Your Holy Spirit opens a door and tells me to go. May I be bold and ready to go and tell others that Jesus wants to have a relationship with them.

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Encourager: June 23, 2015

TODAY’S WORD FOR TUESDAY JUNE 23, 2015.

ENCOURAGER

DEFINITION:

One who helps, consoles, or strengthens. One who instills courage or insurance in another person.

SCRIPTURE:

You hear, O Lord, the desire of the afflicted; You encourage them and You listen to their cry. Psalm 10:17

I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will guide you with My eye. Psalm 32:8

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

Discouragement comes to all of us from time to time. When we get discouraged we have a choice as believers. If we focus on our difficult circumstance and negative feelings we can easily be drawn into despair and depression. If we fix our eyes on Jesus in our time of discouragement, God will lift us up and set us free.

Our great encourager is God. A key element in overcoming discouragement is having a personal understanding of who God is and having a personal relationship with Him through Jesus Christ. Psalm 10:17 tells us that God not only hears our cry but listens to our desire when we are down and out and encourages us.

We often listen to Dr. Charles Stanley on television. We also have read several of his books. He has given us a list of ten attributes of God that make Him our great encourager. They are:

•    Merciful: God feels compassion for us and is our Father of mercies.

•    Omnipresent: We are never out of God’s reach. In times of loneliness and rejection, we are not alone.

•    Omnipotent: Our Lord has all power and governs everything so He can handle with ease any problem we may face.

•    Omniscient: God possesses all knowledge. He has all wisdom to handle our every situation. He is able to give perfect guidance.

•    Gracious: We do not deserve His grace and he knows we are not perfect. He graciously disciplines and corrects us so we will not continue on a path that could ruin our lives.

•    Patient: God is willing to wait until we are ready to obey Him. His goal is to give us spiritual growth.

•    Wise: The Lord’s judgments are unsearchable and His ways are unfathomable. He knows the future and what is best for us and will guide us to that point.

•    Faithful: Even if we are faithless, He remains faithful. What He promises He will do. We may walk away from God but God does not walk away from us.

•    Good: He is the giver of good things and He is the one that determines what is good. He allows trials because He uses them to change us and then mold us to conform to Christ’s likeness.

•    Unchanging: The God of the Old Testament is the same One we worship today. He is just as faithful to us as He was to Abraham.

God encourages us through His Word, through prayer, through songs of praise, through other believer’s and with His presence no matter where we are or what we are doing. Be encouraged. You are not alone. God is always by your side to lift you up and encourage your troubled heart.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Colossians 3:4:

When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

PRAYER:

Keep me encouraged every day so I can witness all the good things You provide for me. Help me to be aware of all your daily blessings in my life so that my attitude will be transformed.

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Accepted: June 22, 2015

TODAY’S WORD FOR MONDAY JUNE 22, 2015.

ACCEPTED

DEFINITION:

Received with approval or favor; generally approved; widely regarded as normal or satisfactory.

SCRIPTURE:

To the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the beloved. Ephesians 1:6.

Accept one another, just as Christ accepted you, in order to bring praise to God. Romans 15:7.

KNOWLEDGE AND EXPERIENCE:

Today we see crowds of protestors on the street to take a stand against some recent event or some issue that is not acceptable to them. The world of non-believers is quick to react against something or some person they do not accept, especially if it goes against what they seem to believe or does not match their “ME” philosophy.

When the Apostle Paul was among believers in Jesus he was accepted. But when he was among un-believers he was persecuted verbally and physically. Paul was not accepted because he did not do or act like the un-believers did. He spoke against the sinful things they did and he did not say what they wanted to hear.

The scripture is clear. We are all sinners and as sinners we are unacceptable to God. Ephesians 1:6 tells us that God has provided a way for us to be acceptable. By His grace God gave us His Son Jesus to provide that way. He made us accepted in His beloved if we accepted Jesus as our Savior.

We may look different, think differently or talk differently, but God loves us all and it is our choice to believe and accept Jesus into our heart or to reject His offer. Doing nothing is rejection.

We are surrounded daily by people who commit acts of wrong doing and whose behavior is unacceptable. God wants us, as believers, to show kindness to them as a person. We do not need to accept the unacceptable behavior but we need to accept the person so that they can see Christ in us and through us.

LEARNING:

Our memory verse for this week is found in Colossians 3:4:

When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.

PRAYER:

Help me to accept each person that I meet today as one that You love and care for. Help me, by example and with my words, to teach my children, family and friends to accept others and to never be cruel to others who are different than we are.

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